I have to be honest with you: This isn't really archaic art. It's just some random stuff I started to draw one day, in the middle of a boring class. It's only that. And then again it's more than that. At first I started doing quick sketches of my teacher or the guys sitting next to me. And after doing this for almost a year I got better at it. I improved. They say practice will often cause that... a certain improvement. If that's the case, I'll continue holding pens and nibs.

November 27, 2013

Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. - Jim Steranko

After a very successful run in Strange Tales, Marvel decided it was time to give Nick Fury his own title. And thus Nick Fury, Agent of Shield begun. It is in the pages of this new title that Steranko gains even more notoriety, as he continues to push the boundaries of the 7th art, defying the conventionalities of the medium.

Jim Steranko

Nick & Val (censored) / Nick y Val (con censura)

And Steranko moves even further away from the swashbuckling model established by Lee and Kirby. He eliminates permanently most of the supporting cast created by ‘the Man’, and he even gets rid of Dum Dum Dugan… although only temporarily. Perhaps one of Steranko’s most important contributions is Contessa Valentina Allegra de la Fontaine, one of S.H.I.E.L.D.’s best new agents.Valentina or ‘Val’, as Nick calls her, is a beautiful Italian lady: elegant, graceful, sensual and provocative. So sexy, in fact, that she immediately became a headache for the censors of the Comics Code Authority. Time and time again, the Code asked for panels to be modified or deleted. Censorship was very normal in the 70s, and thus we see how on several occasions Jim Steranko was forced to redraw some panels. For instance, in a well-known splash page, we have a magnificent view of Valentina’s derrière, the Code, of course, presented their objections against this excessively voluptuous depiction. And Steranko had no other choice but to cover with black ink the contours of Val’s lovely ass. The problem, of course, is that the Code started to get very nervous with Nick Fury. In one particular occasion, Nick is chained by the neck, something considered perhaps a reference to bondage or sadomasochistic practices. Censorship, once again, was victorious and Steranko had to redraw those pages, leaving Nick chained by the hands and not the neck.

Nick & Val (uncensored) / Nick y Val (sin censura)

There is, however, one famous scene that was also censored by the Code and, because of that, became one of the most celebrated comic moments from the 60s. I’m talking about an instant of intimacy between the one-eyed spy and the Contessa. In Steranko’s original page, we could see Val’s cleavage, an off the hook phone and, finally, Nick and Valentina hugging each other. Of course, the sexual elements were too strong for the Code and they decided to have them removed. First, they erased Val’s cleavage line, then they put the phone in its proper position, and finally they replaced the scene of the hug with a detail extracted from the first panel. Nick Fury’s gun firmly placed in its holster.I remember I saw a comic book documentary on the History Channel, years ago, and I think it was Stan Lee who was talking about this specific page. The Code wanted to eradicate all possible references to sex, but inadvertently, by choosing as the last panel of the page a gun in its holster, they intensified what was timidly suggested in the first place. If Nick and Val go for a hug on the original version, it was clear that here, on the censored –printed– version Nick and Val were having sex, Nick’s loaded gun was indeed firmly inserted in Val’s welcoming holster.Jim Steranko also breaks free from one of the most annoying habits of silver age creators: dialogue congestion. If we take a look at the early issues of Strange Tales we will find that each panel was full of dialogue, the amount of text was simply disproportionate, suffocating in many occasions the drawings of the artist. This was very common in the 60s, there seemed to be some sort of horror vacui in the writer’s mind, and every drawing had to be crammed with hundreds of words. Even Steranko does the same in his first issues as full author. But here in Nick Fury he finally understands the importance of a clean visual narrative. And we have several mute pages. The actions are so clear that they loudly speak for themselves. There’s really no need for dialogue to clutter Steranko’s wonderful art.This also translates into a much more effective page design. One of my favorite examples is the double page spread of Dark Moon Rise, Hell Hound Kill! Here, each of the title’s letters works as a separate panel, telling a story that starts with ‘Dark’ and ends with ‘Kill’. The rest of space is free, but not entirely empty. Some soft black lines on a white background are enough to create a haunting scenario. This is one of the brightest examples of creativity and visual economy. I love it. Of course, Steranko went even further and created what many contemporary artists have imitated: a quadruple page spread that captures a dramatic moment and keeps the dialogues and captions to the minimum. After reading S.H.I.E.L.D. by Steranko is easy to understand why this creator is so respected and admired. In an era ruled by Jack ‘King’ Kirby, Steranko found the way to express his own artistic style. His two years as writer and penciler of Strange Tales and Nick Fury show his evolution, from a simple Kirby clone to a complex and fascinating artist with a voice of his own. His evolution, in many ways, reminds me of one of my favorite artists: Barry Windsor-Smith. He also started as a Kirby emulator but he quickly developed a style of his own. Marvel has recently released a volume that contains the entire mythic Steranko run. I bought it. And that’s how I read it all for the first time in my life. I would suggest you to do the same.________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

About Me

Comic books are my passion. They are as precious to me as the oxygen I breathe, and perhaps even more. The 9th art has been a part of my life for as long as I can remember. And through the years, this passion kept on increasing, thus turning me into an active participant. I started as a reader and later on I became a full-fledged writer and artist. Indeed I’ve found the perfect way to have twice as much pleasure when it comes to comics: I can either read them or write and draw them. And I absolutely love doing both!